jueves, 9 de enero de 2020

Walkability Action Institute - National Association of Chronic Disease Directors

Walkability Action Institute - National Association of Chronic Disease Directors



Experiential Institutes Lead To Walkability Goals


The Republic of Palau hosted a Walkability Institute in early 
November. The two-day event led multi-sector stakeholders to 
develop action plans around short- and long-term goals for 
increasing walkability. In Palau, 73% of people are overweight 
or have obesity and half of adults have low levels of physical 
activity. Encouraging walking as an easy, low-cost solution is 
challenging though, because most streets have no sidewalks 
and most intersections have no crosswalks.


The Institute was experiential, said Margaret West, public health 

advisor in DNPAO’s Program Development and Evaluation 
Branch who attended the Palau institute in early November. For 
example, during a “walk audit,” participants found a street leading 
to an elementary school with no sidewalk or dedicated lane for 
pedestrians. That led to dangerous conditions for students walking 
to school. A short-term solution would be delaying student pick-up 
to let pedestrians clear the area first. A more permanent solution 
would be creating a delineated walkway on the side of the road. 
After the workshop, DNPAO staff provide monthly technical 
assistance to a coalition of participants as well as support for 
a pilot project.

Walkability Institute

Improving walkability has a three-fold impact, West noted. First, 
it makes walking safer for pedestrians. Secondly, walking 
increases physical activity which reduces the risk of chronic 
diseases. Third, it helps improve air quality because people 
drive cars for short trips when it is not safe or convenient to walk.


Walkability Institutes in U.S. affiliated territories and jurisdictions 

in the Pacific are coordinated by the Training Programs in 
Epidemiology and Public Health Interventions Network (TEPHINET) 
through a cooperative agreement. Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands 
have also hosted Walkability Institutes.


The Walkability Institutes are modeled after the

 Walkability Action Institute (WAI) funded by DNPAO and led by 
the National Association of Chronic Disease Directors. In five 
years, WAI has trained 51 interdisciplinary teams from 31 states 
during annual courses. Often led by consultant Mark Fenton, 
both WAI and the Walkability Institutes follow concepts developed 
by the Montana Department of Health.

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